Behringer X-TOUCH

Universal Control Surface

MIDI Documentation

© Music Tribe Global Brands Ltd. All rights reserved.

All information in this document is subject to change without any further notice.

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X-TOUCH Remote Control of X AIR Mixers
With the release of X-TOUCH firmware version 1.15, the X-TOUCH is able to remotely control the X AIR
series mixers: XR12, XR16, X18, and XR18. The connection between the X-TOUCH and the mixer can be
made via Ethernet connection or MIDI in and out connections. This document shows how to make the
connections, and how to use the X-TOUCH in Xctl mode, Xctl + MC mode, and Xctl + HUI mode.

Operating Modes: Display Network MIDI USB Footswitch/Pedal

Mackie Control Emulation MC
Mackie HUI Emulation HUI
X AIR mixer control Xctl X AIR X AIR — —
X AIR and MCU control* Xctl/MC X AIR X AIR
X AIR and HUI control* XctlHUI X AIR X AIR

– used for DAW control surface

* – toggle between X AIR and DAW control with “SMPTE/BEATS” button

Preparing a Connection Between X AIR Mixer and X-TOUCH Control Surface

Steps: Preparation
1a Make sure your X AIR Mixer is updated to firmware 1.12 or higher
If necessary, go to your X AIR Mixer’s product page on behringer.com and download the most recent
b
firmware file to your PC
c Connect the X AIR EDIT application on your PC with your X AIR Mixer
d Open the Setup/Connection page and upload the new firmware to your mixer
Make sure your X-TOUCH is updated to firmware 1.15 or higher. The current firmware is briefly displayed
2a
above “BARS” when starting
If necessary, go to the X-TOUCH product page on behringer.com and download the most recent
b
firmware update file to your PC
c Follow the instructions in the Readme.txt file contained inside the download zip file
Connect the X-TOUCH and X AIR Mixer using a standard Ethernet LAN cable, or alternatively using
3a
2 MIDI cables (when “Ifc Mode” is MIDI)
b Move the small slider switch on the X AIR Mixer to the “Ethernet” position and power the mixer up

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Direct MIDI Connection Between X AIR Mixer and X-TOUCH Control Surface
Steps: Preparation
4a Make sure your X AIR Mixer is switched on
b Connect any X AIR remote control application with your Mixer as usual
c Open the Setup/Audio-MIDI page, make sure that all MIDI Tx and Rx flags are off
Connect mixer MIDI In to X-TOUCH MIDI Out, and connect mixer MIDI out to the X-TOUCH MIDI In,
d
using 2 standard MIDI cables
5a Hold down the CH01 Select button for more than 2 seconds while switching the X-TOUCH power on
b The CH01 display will show one of the operating modes as described in the table “Operating Modes” above
c Use the CH01 rotary encoder to select the mode “Xctl”
6a Then use the CH02 encoder to choose the interface “Ifc” between MIDI and Network. Select “MIDI” here
Press the CH01 Select button again, and the X-TOUCH will be updated with the mixer parameters,
b
indicating that it is properly connected with the mixer

Direct Ethernet Connection Between X AIR Mixer and X-TOUCH Control Surface
Steps: X-TOUCH Network Setup
4a Hold down the CH01 Select button for more than 2 seconds while switching the X-TOUCH power on
b The CH01 display will show one of the operating modes as described in the “Operating Modes” table above
c Use the CH01 rotary encoder to select the mode “Xctl”
Then use the CH02 encoder to choose the interface “Ifc” between
d
MIDI and Network. Select “Network”
5a Use the CH03 encoder to specify the network mode “DHCP”
X-TOUCH can register on a network in two different modes:
> DHCP = ON (default), automatically detects/assigns an IP address
b
> DHCP = OFF, requires manual setup of “my IP” address
(only choose OFF, if you have a preferred valid IP for X-TOUCH in your network)
c Use the CH03 encoder to specify an IP address of the preferred mixer you wish to control, select “Slv IP”
d Enter/modify the slave IP by turning the CH04...CH07 encoders
6a The LCD display contrast can be adjusted using the CH08 encoder
7a When the above settings are correct, press the CH01 Select button
b The CH01 Select LED will turn off and the channel LCD displays will turn black for some time
Then the CH01-Ch03 displays will indicate:
c > the X-TOUCH IP address on the first line, and
> the Mixer IP address on the second line
If the second line does not show a valid Mixer IP address, you may press the CH08 rotary encoder to
d
“Scan” for another mixer
e Wait for a little while, until the channel LCDs and fader positions are updated with the actual mixer settings
8a Now, your X-TOUCH control surface is connected with the mixer
b You may use all the controls as described in the XCTL Mode overview shown later in this document
The next time X-TOUCH is started, it will automatically attempt to connect to the mixer with the specified
c
Slv IP address again. If it does not connect automatically, go back to step 7d

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Connecting X AIR Mixer and X-TOUCH Control Surface in LAN/WLAN
Network Infrastructure
Steps: Local area Network Setup
Connect any X AIR remote control application with your Mixer as usual, and open the Setup/network pages
3a
for reviewing/adjusting the LAN/WLAN settings
On LAN/WLAN setup pages you may choose either DHCP for automatically receiving an IP address from
b the network router, or manually select a Static IP Address and Subnet Mask that is valid in your network.
DHCP is recommended. Static IP may be useful, if you are familiar with manual IP configuration
X AIR Mixer(s) can be connected to the local network either using a standard Ethernet LAN cable, or
c
alternatively using the internal WLAN module in Wifi Client Mode
In case the mixer is registering on a wireless network, you will need to specify the exact SSID name of the
d
Wifi network and the corresponding Key. See X AIR mixer documentation
Move the small slider switch on the X AIR Mixer to “Ethernet” position when using a wired connection, or
e
slide it to “Wifi Client” when registering on a wireless network infrastructure
f Connect your X-TOUCH to the network router/switch using a CAT5 Ethernet cable
Hold down the X-TOUCH CH01 Select button for more than 2 seconds while switching the
4a
X-TOUCH power on
Follow the instruction steps 4 to 8 in the section “DIRECT ETHERNET CONNECTION BETWEEN X AIR MIXER
b
AND X TOUCH CONTROL SURFACE” shown above

Network Interface Master rtp Slave rtp Static IP DHCP

Mackie Control Emulation
Mackie HUI Emulation
X AIR mixer control — — X AIR X AIR
X AIR and MCU control1 — — X AIR X AIR
X AIR and HUI control1 — — X AIR X AIR

¹Combined modes are controlling MCU/HUI via USB connection and X AIR Mixers via network or MIDI

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MODE: XCTL
This section shows the operation of the X-TOUCH controls in XCTL mode
X-TOUCH firmware: 1.15 X AIR min firmware: 1.12

Operating Modes: Display Network MIDI USB Footswitch/Pedal

Mackie Control Emulation MC
Mackie HUI Emulation HUI
X AIR mixer control Xctl X AIR X AIR — X AIR
X AIR and MCU control1 Xctl/MC X AIR X AIR
X AIR and HUI control1 XctlHUI X AIR X AIR

– used for DAW control surface

1 – toggle between X AIR and DAW control with “SMPTE/BEATS” button

NOTE: Combined Operating Modes1 are using the Ethernet or MIDI ports for controlling the X AIR Mixer,
and use the USB Interface, Footswitch and Pedal input for controlling the DAW. The button “SMPTE/
BEATS” can be used to toggle the console surface between both, Mixer and DAW control.

NOTE: X AIR Mixer MIDI rx/tx flags must be off, when X-TOUCH controls the mixer via MIDI

KEY: In the information below,* refers to the X18/XR18 only, and ** refers to XR12/XR16 only

Please refer to the diagram on the last page that shows the X-TOUCH top panel controls

General Buttons
Global View return to home view with channel names and pan
Flip indicates Sends-on-Faders and allows to switch it off
SEL select an X AIR channel for remote control
MUTE mute an X AIR channel
SOLO solo an X AIR channel
FDR BANK < > select fader banks 1-8; 9-16; Aux/FX1-4 Return; Bus 1-6/Main; FX1-4 Send/DCA1-4
CHANNEL < > scroll through channels 1 ... Main
Name / Value clear all solos

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 Other Functions display: action:
FUNCTION F5 - F6 — —
FUNCTION F7 X Toggle AUTOMIX Group X on/off
FUNCTION F8 Y Toggle AUTOMIX Group Y on/off
MODIFY SHIFT FX1 Sends on Faders FX 1
MODIFY OPTION FX2 Sends on Faders FX 2
MODIFY CONTROL FX3 Sends on Faders FX 3
MODIFY # ALT FX4 Sends on Faders FX 4
AUTOMATION READ BU1 Sends on Faders BUS 1
AUTOMATION WRITE BU2 Sends on Faders BUS 2
AUTOMATION TRIM BU3 Sends on Faders BUS 3
AUTOMATION TOUCH BU4 Sends on Faders BUS 4
AUTOMATION LATCH BU5 Sends on Faders BUS 5
AUTOMATION GROUP BU6 Sends on Faders BUS 6
UTILITY SAVE 1 Toggle Mute Group 1 on/off
UTILITY UNDO 2 Toggle Mute Group 2 on/off
UTILITY CANCEL 3 Toggle Mute Group 3 on/off
UTILITY ENTER 4 Toggle Mute Group 4 on/off

Main Display

ASSIGNMENT indicates selected channel number

BARS indicates target bus/fx-send while Sends-on-Faders is active
BEATS/SUBDIVISIONS indicates the active Mute Groups 1...4
TICKS indicates active Auto Mixing Groups X and Y
LED: SMPTE indicates XCTL surface1
LED: BEATS indicates DAW control surface1

¹) in combined Xctl-MC or Xctl-HUI modes only, use button to toggle

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 Channel Section Global View: LCD displays show channel numbers and names in banks of 8
SOLO
MUTE functions pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels
SELECT
Faders fader levels pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels
Meters channel input meters pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels

Encoder
turn: push: push + turn: push + REC: REC button:
Assign
Global View
panorama pan-center — — —
(default)
all channels on selected bank

Select
TRACK gain/trim — source select 48 V phantom Analog In or
USB Return*
Channel to
PAN/SURROUND panorama pan-center — —
Main LR on/off
Channel Send
Channel ON,
panorama pan-center Mode: Input,
FLIP when bus is
when sending when sending Pre/PostEQ, —
(Sends-on-Fader) in SubGroup
to stereo bus to stereo bus Pre/Post Fdr,
mode
SubGroup
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: page select 2: EQ on/off
3: LowCut freq. 3: LowCut freq. 3: LowCut
4: — 4: — on/off
EQ (Channel)
5: Gain1 — 5: Freq1 — 4: —
page 1/2
6: Gain2 6: Freq2 5: —
7: Gain3 7: Freq3 6: —
8: Gain4 8: Freq4 7: —
8: —
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
for selected channel

2: page select 2: — 2: EQ on/off

3: LowCut freq. 3: — 3: LowCut
4: — 4: — on/off
EQ (Channel)
5: Q1 — 5: Band Type1 — 4: —
page 2/2
6: Q2 6: Band Type2 5: —
7: Q3 7: Band Type3 6: —
8: Q4" 8: Band Type4 7: —
8: —
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: Bus-EQ 2: EQ on/off
3: Gain1 mode 3: —
4: Gain2 3: Freq1 4: —
EQ (Bus)
5: Gain3 — 4: Freq2 — 5: —
page 1/2
6: Gain4 5: Freq3 6: —
7: Gain5 6: Freq4 7: —
8: Gain6 7: Freq5 8: —
8: Freq6

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 Encoder
turn: push: push + turn: push + REC: REC button:
Assign
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: Bus-EQ 2: EQ on/off
3: Q1 mode 3: —
4: Q2 3: Band Type1 4: —
EQ (Bus)
5: Q3 — 4: Band Type2 — 5: —
page 2/2
6: Q4 5: Band Type3 6: —
7: Q5 6: Band Type4 7: —
8: Q6 7: Band Type5 8: —
8: Band Type6
Send Level Channel ON,
SEND 1-6 / Pan when bus is
— — —
(to Buses) 4, 6, 8 for in sub group
stereo buses mode
5: Send to FX1
PLUG-IN 6: Send to FX2
— — — —
(send to FX) 7: Send to FX3
8: Send to FX4
1: select chan. 1: —
for selected channel

GATE: 2: GATE on/off

3: Threshold 3: —
INST (Noise Gate) 4: Mode 4: —
— — —
page 1/3 5: Range 5: —
6: Attack 6: —
7: Hold 7: —
8: Release 8: —
1: select chan. 1: —
COMP: 2: COMP on/off
3: Threshold 3: —
INST
4: Ratio 4: —
(Compressor) — — —
5: MGain 5: —
page 2/3
6: Attack 6: Auto on/off
7: Hold 7: Auto on/off
8: Release 8: Auto on/off
1: select chan. 1: -- 1: —
AMix/ DCA/ 2: -- 2: —
MG 3: -- 3: —
INST 3: AutoMix Grp 4: -- 4: —
(Assignments) 4: A-MixWeight 5: DCA Grp 1 — — 5: Mute Grp 1
page 3/3 5: — 6: DCA Grp 2 6: Mute Grp 2
6: — 7: DCA Grp 3 7: Mute Grp 3
7: — 8: DCA Grp 4 8: Mute Grp 4
8: —

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 FUNCTION turn: REC button:
1: page select
2: —
3: param1
F1 - F4 = 4: param2 When Delay effect types are selected, the REC
FUNCTION edit button below the Delay Time parameter can
FX1-FX4 5: param3 be used for tapping the tempo
6: param4
7: param5
8: param6

TRANSPORT FUNCTIONS for XR12/XR16 USB RECORDER **

STOP amber LED Stops all playback or recording

while
PLAY green LED Starts playback of selected track
stopped

while
PAUSE PLAY green flashing Pauses current playback
playing

while
FFWD amber LED Fast forward in the playing track
playing

while
FRWD amber LED Fast rewind in the playing track
playing

while Starts recording audio to the root of attached

RECORD red LED
stopped USB media

while
PAUSE REC red LED flashing Pauses current recording
playing

while
SKIP UP — Selects the next audio file in the list
stopped

while
SKIP DOWN — Selects the previous audio file in the list
stopped

Toggles “Play Folder” option that continues

TRANSPORT: “REPLACE” red LED
playback for all files in the current folder

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MODE: XCTL + MCU and XCTL + HUI
This section shows the operation of the X-TOUCH controls in XCTL + MCU mode and XCTL + HUI mode
X-TOUCH firmware: 1.15 X AIR min firmware: 1.12

Operating Modes: Display Network MIDI USB Footswitch/Pedal

Mackie Control Emulation MC
Mackie HUI Emulation HUI
X AIR mixer control Xctl X AIR X AIR — —
X AIR and MCU control1 Xctl/MC X AIR X AIR
X AIR and HUI control1 XctlHUI X AIR X AIR

– used for DAW control surface

1 – toggle between X AIR and DAW control with “SMPTE/BEATS” button

NOTE: Combined Operating Modes1 are using the Ethernet or MIDI ports for controlling the X AIR Mixer,
and use the USB Interface, Footswitch and Pedal input for controlling the DAW. The button “SMPTE/
BEATS” can be used to toggle the console surface between both, Mixer and DAW control.

NOTE: X AIR Mixer MIDI rx/tx flags must be off, when X-TOUCH controls the mixer via MIDI

KEY: In the information below,* refers to the X18/XR18 only, and ** refers to XR12/XR16 only

Please refer to the diagram on the last page that shows the X-TOUCH top panel controls

XCTL OPERATING MODE DESCRIPTION

General Buttons
Global View return to home view with channel names and pan
Flip indicates Sends-on-Faders and allows to switch it off
SEL select an X AIR channel for remote control
MUTE mute an X AIR channel
SOLO solo an X AIR channel
FDR BANK < > select fader banks 1-8; 9-16; Aux/FX1-4 Return; Bus 1-6/Main; FX1-4 Send/DCA1-4
CHANNEL < > scroll through channels 1 ... Main
Name / Value clear all solos

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 Other Functions display: action:
FUNCTION F5 - F6 — —
FUNCTION F7 X Toggle AUTOMIX Group X on/off
FUNCTION F8 Y Toggle AUTOMIX Group Y on/off
MODIFY SHIFT FX1 Sends on Faders FX 1
MODIFY OPTION FX2 Sends on Faders FX 2
MODIFY CONTROL FX3 Sends on Faders FX 3
MODIFY # ALT FX4 Sends on Faders FX 4
AUTOMATION READ BU1 Sends on Faders BUS 1
AUTOMATION WRITE BU2 Sends on Faders BUS 2
AUTOMATION TRIM BU3 Sends on Faders BUS 3
AUTOMATION TOUCH BU4 Sends on Faders BUS 4
AUTOMATION LATCH BU5 Sends on Faders BUS 5
AUTOMATION GROUP BU6 Sends on Faders BUS 6
UTILITY SAVE 1 Toggle Mute Group 1 on/off
UTILITY UNDO 2 Toggle Mute Group 2 on/off
UTILITY CANCEL 3 Toggle Mute Group 3 on/off
UTILITY ENTER 4 Toggle Mute Group 4 on/off

Main Display

ASSIGNMENT selected channel and solo indicator for X AIR mixer or

DAW control
BARS Song position pointer of DAW
BEATS/SUBDIVISIONS Song position pointer of DAW
TICKS Song position pointer of DAW
LED: SMPTE indicates active X AIR Mixer surface1
LED: BEATS indicates active DAW control surface1

¹) in combined Xctl-MC or Xctl-HUI modes only, use button to toggle

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 Channel Section Global View: LCD displays show channel numbers and names in banks of 8
SOLO
MUTE functions pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels
SELECT
Faders fader levels pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels
Meters channel input meters pertaining to the selected block of 8 channels

Encoder
turn: push: push + turn: push + REC: REC button:
Assign
Global View
panorama pan-center — — —
(default)
all channels on selected bank

48 V phantom Select
TRACK gain/trim — source select “P” indicates Analog In or
48 V ON USB Return*
Channel to
PAN/SURROUND panorama pan-center — —
Main LR on/off
Channel Send
Channel ON,
panorama pan-center Mode: Input,
FLIP when bus is
when sending when sending Pre/PostEQ, —
(Sends-on Fader) in SubGroup
to stereo bus to stereo bus Pre/Post Fdr,
mode
SubGroup
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: page select 2: EQ on/off
3: LowCut freq. 3: LowCut freq. 3: LowCut
4: — 4: — on/off
EQ (Channel)
5: Gain1 — 5: Freq1 — 4: —
page 1/2
6: Gain2 6: Freq2 5: —
7: Gain3 7: Freq3 6: —
8: Gain4 8: Freq4 7: —
8: —
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
for selected channel

2: page select 2: — 2: EQ on/off

3: LowCut freq. 3: — 3: LowCut
4: — 4: — on/off
EQ (Channel)
5: Q1 — 5: Band Type1 — 4: —
page 2/2
6: Q2 6: Band Type2 5: —
7: Q3 7: Band Type3 6: —
8: Q4" 8: Band Type4 7: —
8: —
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: Bus-EQ 2: EQ on/off
3: Gain1 mode 3: —
4: Gain2 3: Freq1 4: —
EQ (Bus)
5: Gain3 — 4: Freq2 — 5: —
page 1/2
6: Gain4 5: Freq3 6: —
7: Gain5 6: Freq4 7: —
8: Gain6 7: Freq5 8: —
8: Freq6

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 Encoder
turn: push: push + turn: push + REC: REC button:
Assign
1: select chan. 1: — 1: —
2: page select 2: Bus-EQ 2: EQ on/off
3: Q1 mode 3: —
4: Q2 3: Band Type1 4: —
EQ (Bus)
5: Q3 — 4: Band Type2 — 5: —
page 2/2
6: Q4 5: Band Type3 6: —
7: Q5 6: Band Type4 7: —
8: Q6 7: Band Type5 8: —
8: Band Type6
Send Level Channel ON,
SEND 1-6 / Pan when bus is
— — —
(to Buses) 4, 6, 8 for in sub group
stereo buses mode
5: Send to FX1
PLUG-IN 6: Send to FX2
— — — —
(send to FX) 7: Send to FX3
8: Send to FX4
1: select chan. 1: —
for selected channel

GATE: 2: GATE on/off

3: Threshold 3: —
INST (Noise Gate) 4: Mode 4: —
— — —
page 1/3 5: Range 5: —
6: Attack 6: —
7: Hold 7: —
8: Release 8: —
1: select chan. 1: —
COMP: 2: COMP on/off
3: Threshold 3: —
INST
4: Ratio 4: —
(Compressor) — — —
5: MGain 5: —
page 2/3
6: Attack 6: Auto on/off
7: Hold 7: Auto on/off
8: Release 8: Auto on/off
1: select chan. 1: -- 1: —
AMix/ DCA/ 2: -- 2: —
MG 3: -- 3: —
INST 3: AutoMix Grp 4: -- 4: —
(Assignments) 4: A-MixWeight 5: DCA Grp 1 — — 5: Mute Grp 1
page 3/3 5: — 6: DCA Grp 2 6: Mute Grp 2
6: — 7: DCA Grp 3 7: Mute Grp 3
7: — 8: DCA Grp 4 8: Mute Grp 4
8: —

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 FUNCTION turn: REC button:
1: page select
2: —
3: param1
F1 - F4 = 4: param2 When Delay effect types are selected, the REC
FUNCTION edit button below the Delay Time parameter can
FX1-FX4 5: param3 be used for tapping the tempo
6: param4
7: param5
8: param6

TRANSPORT FUNCTIONS CONTROL DAW PERMANENTLY

STOP amber LED Stops all playback or recording

while Starts playback at current song position

PLAY green LED
stopped pointer (SPP)

while Pauses current playback and resets the song

PAUSE PLAY green flashing
playing position pointer (SPP) to current position

while
FFWD amber LED Fast forward in the playing track
playing

while
FRWD amber LED Fast rewind in the playing track
playing

while Starts recording audio to the root of attached

RECORD red LED
stopped USB media

while
PUNCH INTO RECORDING red LED Switches from Play to Record on armed tracks
playing

while
DROP OUT OF RECORDIING red LED off Switches from Record to Play on armed tracks
recording

while
SKIP FWD — Sets the SPP to the next Locator or Marker
stopped

while Sets the SPP to the previous Locator

SKIP REW —
stopped or Marker

Toggles “Loop” or “Cycle” playback/recording

TRANSPORT: “CYCLE” green LED
between left/right locator points on/off

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